Nedlands Apocalypse

Last Sunday, before the cyclone hit, the smoke from a bushfire shrouded Perth. This was the scene as I entered the Windsor Cinema.

A Little Wetness

Here are yesterday's rainfall figures for Perth metro sites.

Cyclone Joyce

For fans of extreme weather, recent summers in Perth have been wonderful. After last year's wettest summer in history, plus our coldest ever summer day (17 degrees in Perth, 13 degrees in Bickley), we have ex-tropical Cyclone Joyce to look forward to. If there's a direct hit, we could get over 100mm of rain by Tuesday. Here is the latest forecast.

My Top Ten Novels of 2017

I wasn't able to read as much as I hoped last year, getting through 201 novels, 19 less than in 2016. But there was plenty of quality among them. Here are my most enjoyable reads. These include fiction published any year, not just last year.

1. The Witchwood Crown (The Last King of Osten Ard, #1) by Tad Williams (FANTASY)
 

2. The Shuddering by Ania Ahlborn (HORROR)

3. The Ritual by Adam Nevill (HORROR)

4. The Mime Order (The Bone Season #2) by Samantha Shannon (FANTASY)

5. Mostly Void, Partially Stars (Welcome to Night Vale Episodes, #1) by Joseph Fink  (FANTASY)

6. Breakfast with the Borgias by D.B.C. Pierre (WEIRD)

7. A Suspension of Mercy by Patricia Highsmith (THRILLER)

8. Willful Child: Wrath of Betty by Steven Erikson (SCI FI)

9. Some Rain Must Fall by Karl Ove Knausgard (DRAMA)

10. The Barrow by Mark Smylie (FANTASY)

My Cats' Favourite Flicks of 2017

As is traditional, my two cats have been debating furiously which films should appear in their joint top ten list. And finally they've come up with the following, in no particular order:

Miss Sloane - (I must mention that I fell asleep in this movie twice, the first time in the cinema, the second time on a plane).

Guardians of the Galaxy 2 - I'm proud of my cats that they only listed one comic book movie. Any more would be an embarrassment.

Dunkirk

Wind River

The Hitman's Bodyguard

Blade Runner 2049

The Death of Stalin

Neruda

Gold

Hidden Figures

It's rather impressive that cats can count to ten.

And honourable mentions go to:

Alone in Berlin

Life

The Dinner

Daddy's Home 2

Only the Brave

Why Him?

US Snow Cover

It's not yet winter, but look how much of the US is covered by snow. It even stretches over the border from Texas into Mexico.

Films of the Year 2017

Yes, I'm jumping the gun, but I just can't wait any longer. I need to tell you my ten favourite new release movies for the year. So here we go, in reverse order.

10. Personal Shopper - Kristen Stewart is haunted by the ghost of her brother. But it's no conventional haunting. 

9. The Exception - the German Kaiser Wilhelm is in exile in Holland during the Second World War, and is the subject of plotting from both the Dutch resistance, and the Nazis. Surely it must end happily.

8. Blade Runner 2049 - the best looking film of the year (aside from number 2)

7. Trainspotting 2 - more moving than the original

6. Mother - insane, but in a good way. 

5. The Death of Stalin - hilarious black comedy

4. It - having read the 3,000 page Steven King novel, I prefer this film. You care for the kids, so when the horror hits, it hurts

3. Dunkirk - relentless and moving. I'll never forget the Spitfire silently gliding over the troops after running out of fuel

2.My Cousin Rachel - is she evil or just misunderstood? Poor Rachel. The cinematography is painfully beautiful, transporting you to rural Cornwall in the 1830s. 

1. On Chesil Beach - terribly tragic love story, based on an Ian McEwan novel, starring Saoirse Ronan and Billy Howle as the idiot who nearly ruined his life over nothing 

And honourable mentions go to:

Lion, The King's Choice, Guardians of the Galaxy 2, Alien Covenant, Neighbourhood Food Drive, Thor Ragnorak, Mary Shelley and Atomic Blonde.

Dead Camera

For the second time in 18 months, my Olympus OM-D E-M10 has died. Last year an unnamed photographer we shall call L*wk dropped his camera onto tarmac, crippling the pop-up flash, and denting the body. The camera still lived on, but was no longer fully functional. So off to Hardly Normal Armadale I went to pick up a bargain-priced replacement camera, an identical one but less than half the price of the original.

All went well till halfway through my Chicago trip a few months ago, when my camera decided that it would over-expose all shots in sunlight. No matter how I adjusted the exposure, it was way off. I reset to factory settings, and still it malfunctioned. When home again, I took it to be repaired under warranty, but to no avail. The repair shop told me I didn't know how to adjust the exposure and said there was nothing wrong. I took it out one weekend, and again, the overexposure persisted.

So until Christmas I'm without a decent camera, and this blog is temporarily out of action. I know my thousands of fans (or at least my mum) will struggle to occupy themselves with no new photos from me for a while, but don't despair - I'll be blogging my top films and novels of the year very soon.

Laters,
Lewk

Monet's Garden

This is from May.

Yet Another Sunset

These shots were taken in Churchlands on Monday, over the playing fields of Newman College. The fiery colours only lasted for 5 to 10 minutes before they faded as the sun passed below the horizon.

Winter Wetness

This is the type of winter weather I love. Endless sky-water.

Cinema Bonanza

The future is looking bright for cinema lovers in Perth. Several developments will expand the number of screens near my home. Here are the plans I'm aware of.

Ace Subiaco is reopening in December 2016 with four screens

Luna Leederville have purchased a neighbouring property, and will double from four to eight screens

A brand new cinema will be built in Karrinyup as part of the shopping centre's doubling in size

The current Innaloo cinema will be replaced by a more modern theatre within the shopping centre

And a new 12 screen cinema complex will be built in Raine Square.

Totally Uncreepy Church Sculpture

Spotted in the Louvre's mediaeval section, these faceless ghouls bearing a coffin are freaky.

La Tour Eiffel

At 10pm each night, the Eiffel tower sparkles like diamonds, for five minutes only. But this was the view half an hour earlier, not long after sunset, from the hotel window.

Invader Sighting

While dining al fresco on my first evening in Paris, I saw a familiar piece of pixel art on the building across the street. This was a genuine piece mosaic from Invader, the infamous street artist fond of 80s video games. His website tells me that I scored 50 points for this sighting.

Paris in Springtime

This was the scene inside Notre Dame cathedral when I visited a couple of months ago. Despite extensive searching, I couldn't find any hunchbacks.

Endless Snowiness

It's the first week of May and the snow keeps falling in the US and Canada, even as far south as Texas. I hope some remains on the ground when I arrive in a month or so.

Pre-Holiday Bingeing

It's always entertaining using up the perishables in your pantry and fridge prior to a holiday. The aim of the game is to minimise the quantity of food that might expire while you're away, and to maximise the amount in your stomach. With a week to go, it's still possible to eat relatively normally, with a little attention to what ingredients are available when you decide on your meals. But in the final days, craziness reigns. You find you're left with a tub of whipped cream, some pitted prunes, three croissants, a fennel and some caramelised onion and a pack of marshmellows. I feel I'm on a Masterchef mystery box challenge, but without the skill to combine the ingredients into anything edible.

Christmas is Fading

My Christmas supplies are running very low, as always happens by this time of year. The last of the mince pies went a few weeks ago, and the final Christmas pudding and custard have been opened, and are being consumed each evening. There's still some tinsel on my desk, but all other decorations are stowed away.

It's a sad time, but at least we're only five months from Christmas in July.

Insane February Weather

This has been a record-breaking month for Perth weather. Take a look at the temperatures (very low), and the rainfall (very high) for supposedly the hottest month of the year.

Chilly Summer

Here be the forecast maximum temperatures today in Western Australia. Perth's all-time lowest Feb maximum is 19 degrees, and we'll struggle to surpass that with a full day of rain ahead.


Forecast for Thursday 9 February 2017

Kimberley

Location		Max.	Summary
Broome		32 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Derby		32 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Fitzroy Crossing		32 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Kalumburu		30 °C	Showers. Storm possible.
Wyndham		31 °C	Showers. Storm possible.
Kununurra		30 °C	Showers. Storm possible.
Argyle		30 °C	Showers. Storm possible.
Halls Creek MO		30 °C	Showers. Possible storm.
Bidyadanga		33 °C	Possible shower or storm.
Wallal		32 °C	Showers. Possible storm.

Pilbara

Location		Max.	Summary
Exmouth		27 °C	Rain periods. Storm possible.
Onslow		28 °C	Rain periods. Likely storm clearing.
Karratha		28 °C	Showers. Wind easing.
Roebourne		29 °C	Showers.
Port Hedland		29 °C	Showers.
Marble Bar		28 °C	Showers.
Paraburdoo		28 °C	Possible morning storm. Showers.
Tom Price		24 °C	Possible morning storm. Showers.
Newman		27 °C	Showers. Windy.
Barrow Island		29 °C	Rain periods. Likely storm clearing.
Dampier		29 °C	Showers. Wind easing.
Pannawonica		26 °C	Rain periods. Likely storm clearing.
Telfer		34 °C	Possible shower or storm.

Gascoyne

Location		Max.	Summary
Carnarvon		27 °C	Windy. Rain periods. Storm likely.
Coral Bay		26 °C	Rain periods. Storm possible.
Meekatharra		32 °C	Shower or two. Becoming windy.
Denham		29 °C	Windy. Rain periods. Late storm likely.
Gascoyne Junction		30 °C	Showers. Storm possible.
Mount Magnet		32 °C	Shower or two. Windy.
Mount Augustus		27 °C	Showers. Possible storm.
Murchison		31 °C	Showers increasing.
Paynes Find		27 °C	Shower or two.
Yalgoo		29 °C	Rain increasing. Wind easing.

Goldfields

Location		Max.	Summary
Kalgoorlie		21 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Leonora		31 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Laverton		31 °C	Showers. Possible storm.
Leinster		34 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Norseman		18 °C	Rain periods.
Coolgardie		20 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Kambalda		21 °C	Showers. Possible storm.
Wiluna		34 °C	Possible shower. Windy.

Eucla

Location		Max.	Summary
Eucla		25 °C	Partly cloudy.
Balladonia		21 °C	Rain periods.
Cocklebiddy		24 °C	Possible shower or storm.

North Interior

Location		Max.	Summary
Balgo Hill		32 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.
Kiwirrkurra		37 °C	Shower or two. Possible storm.

South Interior

Location		Max.	Summary
Warburton		38 °C	Possible shower or storm.

Central West

Location		Max.	Summary
Kalbarri		29 °C	Rain increasing.
Geraldton		29 °C	Rain periods. Becoming windy.
Jurien Bay		23 °C	Rain periods. Becoming windy.
Morawa		27 °C	Rain increasing.
Moora		20 °C	Rain periods.
Badgingarra		21 °C	Rain periods.
Carnamah		25 °C	Rain periods. Wind easing.
Dongara		29 °C	Rain periods.
Eneabba		25 °C	Rain periods. Becoming windy.
Mullewa		27 °C	Rain increasing.
Northampton		28 °C	Rain increasing.

Lower West

Location		Max.	Summary
Ellenbrook		19 °C	Rain periods.
Yanchep		20 °C	Rain periods.
Perth		20 °C	Rain periods.
Joondalup		20 °C	Rain periods.
Scarborough		20 °C	Rain periods.
Fremantle		20 °C	Rain periods.
Rockingham		20 °C	Rain periods.
Midland		18 °C	Rain periods.
Kalamunda		17 °C	Rain periods.
Armadale		17 °C	Rain periods.
Swanbourne		20 °C	Rain periods.
Rottnest Island		21 °C	Rain periods. Windy.
Mandurah		20 °C	Rain periods.
Pinjarra		21 °C	Rain periods.
Gingin		19 °C	Rain periods.
Lancelin		20 °C	Rain periods.

South West

Location		Max.	Summary
Bunbury		24 °C	Rain at times developing.
Busselton		26 °C	Possible rain developing.
Margaret River		25 °C	Partly cloudy.
Augusta		22 °C	Partly cloudy.
Bridgetown		22 °C	Possible rain developing.
Collie		19 °C	Rain at times.
Manjimup		22 °C	Partly cloudy.
Boyup Brook		21 °C	Possible rain developing.
Pemberton		22 °C	Partly cloudy.
Yallingup		25 °C	Partly cloudy.
Harvey		21 °C	Rain at times.
Walpole		20 °C	Cloudy.
Windy Harbour		20 °C	Cloudy.

South Coastal

Location		Max.	Summary
Albany		18 °C	Cloudy.
Denmark		20 °C	Cloudy.
Mount Barker		19 °C	Possible late rain.
Jerramungup		16 °C	Rain periods.
Bremer Bay		18 °C	Rain increasing.
Gnowangerup		17 °C	Rain at times.

South East Coastal

Location		Max.	Summary
Esperance		16 °C	Rain periods.
Ravensthorpe		14 °C	Rain periods.
Hopetoun		17 °C	Rain periods.
Salmon Gums		15 °C	Rain periods.

Great Southern

Location		Max.	Summary
Narrogin		15 °C	Rain periods.
Katanning		17 °C	Rain at times.
Lake Grace		14 °C	Rain periods.
Hyden		15 °C	Rain periods.
Brookton		16 °C	Rain periods.
Corrigin		16 °C	Rain periods.
Wagin		16 °C	Rain periods.

Central Wheat Belt

Location		Max.	Summary
Dalwallinu		21 °C	Rain periods.
Northam		17 °C	Rain periods.
Merredin		18 °C	Rain periods.
Southern Cross		18 °C	Rain periods.
Cunderdin		17 °C	Rain periods.
Dowerin		18 °C	Rain periods.
Mukinbudin		19 °C	Rain periods.
Kellerberrin		17 °C	Rain periods.
Wongan Hills		19 °C	Rain periods.
York		17 °C	Rain periods.